Book Highlight: Guido D'Arezzo and Early Music Notation

Introducing: The First Notes: The Story of DO, RE, MI

(Written by Julie Andrews and Emma Walton Hamilton; Illustrated by Chiara Fedele)

Have you ever heard the song "Doe, a deer, a female deer?" Perhaps you know it from the movie "The Sound of Music," in which Julie Andrews sings it. Have you ever wondered what all those syllables known as solfège--"Do, re, mi, fa, sol, la, ti, do"--have to do with music? Or who decided that music should be notated with dots, lines, and other squiggly symbols?

Meet the medieval monk Guido D'Arezzo, who developed both an innovative style of music notation and the solfège syllables to teach it.

Explore the world of Guido D'Arezzo with your children in the book The First Notes: The Story of DO, RE, MI, written by Julie Andrews and her daughter, Emma Walton Hamilton. The book tells the story of Guido's life as a monk and his dream to write music down. While Guido D'Arezzo was not the only person to develop notation using neumes (square notes and other symbols used in medieval notation), his use of a staff (lines and spaces) and syllables allowed people to learn songs they had never heard before. His ideas were rejected at first, but they eventually were widely used and became the basis of our modern music notation system. With cheerful prose and charming illustrations, this book will introduce you and your child to Guido D'Arezzo and the history of music notation.

The First Notes is used in our Elementary A curriculum for Grades 3-5. Alongside the story of Guido, this book weaves in the words of "Doe, a deer" to explore solfége syllables, and it contains informative back matter with more about Guido and solfége. The First Notes is just one example of the many beautiful and informative books that make up the core of Music Comes Alive.

Wondering how to acquire the books for Music Comes Alive? We encourage you to start with your local library system, where many of these books may be found. In many cases, you may also find these books through second-hand book stores/websites. For your convenience, we also sell the books for our curricula on our website. You can purchase them individually or as a course bundle.

Check out Elementary A: Medieval to Modern or Shop Elementary A (Grades 3-5)

Check out Primary A: Medieval Melodies to Musical Theater or Shop Primary A (Grades K-2)

Bring music to life at home with Music Comes Alive. Our easy-to-use, literature-based curriculum empowers YOU, the parent, to teach music in your homeschool!

Shop Music Comes Alive Curriculum

Much Ado about Books

We know that affordability and convenience are priorities for homeschool families, and each family may prioritize these differently. Even though the benefits of literature-based study--such as improving focus and cultivating a vibrant imagination--are well-known, buying so many books for music can feel like a hefty purchase for many homeschool families. On the other hand, even though music is an elective subject, music appreciation is essential to a well-rounded education. Having convenient access to a solid music curriculum makes it easy to incorporate music into your homeschool. Fortunately, there are many ways to get the most out of our Music Comes Alive curriculum, making it possible to choose the right balance of affordability and convenience for your family.

(1) Local Library

The majority of the books used in our curriculum can be found for free through your local library system. Even if your library system does not carry these books, they can most likely get them for you through interlibrary loans. It doesn't get much better than free!

Using the library is the least expensive way to acquire the books you need, but it may not always be the most convenient way. Using the library is most effective if you plan in advance, as you may need to use your library's holds system or interlibrary loan system. Make sure you request a hold or an interlibrary loan at least a month before you need the book (sometimes longer for interlibrary loans).*

(2) Let's Get Thrifty!

If the idea of remembering to request library holds on time sounds daunting, there is another great option: buying second-hand! There are several excellent places to buy used books online: Amazon, ThriftBooks, Abebooks, Ebay, etc. If you are especially lucky, you may even be able to find some of these books at local second-hand bookstores, your local library book sale, or through your homeschool buy/sell communities.

Buying second-hand is an affordable way to make sure you have what you need when you need it, without worrying about library holds or loans. However, it may take time to find the books you need, and how much you save depends on which books you need to buy. Some of the books in our curricula are relatively new, which means used copies are harder to find. But for those books that have been around for a while, buying second-hand is a great way to go.

(3) All-in-One

Primary A Books Bundle

There is something to be said for opening a curriculum box and having everything you need. No need to stay on schedule with library holds. No need to spend the summer looking for second-hand copies of books. Just open and go.

That's why we sell book bundles for each course at the Music Comes Alive store. Buying the book bundles is by far the most convenient way to make sure you get the most out of the Music Comes Alive learning experience. In addition, these books represent a long-term investment: many of them will likely become treasured additions to your home library, and, even more importantly, your children (and you!) will develop a strong appreciation of music while forging deep connections as you learn together through reading together.

Elementary A Books Bundle

(4) Mix-and-Match Books

For many families, the best solution may be a combination of all of the above:

1. Maybe interlibrary loans are not your thing, but find what you can in your local library system.

2. Buy second-hand where you can find a good deal.

3. Buy any remaining books new. You can find all the required books in our curricula listed individually at the Music Comes Alive store.

However you choose to acquire books, give the gift of music appreciation to your children with our easy, fun, and comprehensive homeschool music curriculum. At Music Comes Alive, we are here to help you bring music to life for your family.

Shop Curriculum

*Another way to use the library: Our Primary and Elementary curricula might be better described as "literature-supported" than "literature-based" (although as far as I can tell, that's not a phrase in the homeschool canon as yet). We recommend using the books we have scheduled to get the most out of the curriculum. However, if necessary, you may be able to find substitutes. For many of the musicians we cover, there are delightful--often out-of-print--books that are still carried by most library systems. You may have to modify the reading questions to fit the book you've chosen, but the remainder of the lesson plans for each month should still be useable. Please note: Our planned Intermediate (middle school) and High School courses will be truly literature-based, so substituting books will not work well for those curricula.